The role of functions in syntax : a unified approach to language theory, description, and typology / Zygmunt Frajzyngier with Erin Shay.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Frajzyngier, Zygmunt, author.

Shay, Erin, author.

Series:

Typological studies in language ; Volume 111.

Typological Studies in Language (TSL), 0167-7373 ; Volume 111

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Grammar, Comparative and general--Syntax.

Grammar, Comparative and general.

Functionalism (Linguistics).

Typology (Linguistics).

Linguistic models.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (326 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Amsterdam, [Netherlands] ; Philadelphia, [Pennsylvania] : John Benjamins Publishing Company, 2016.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The main aim of this book is to address a fundamental question in linguistics, namely why languages are similar and why they are different. The study proposes that languages are fundamentally similar when they encode the same meanings in their grammatical systems and that languages are different when they encode different meanings. Even if languages encode the same meaning, they may differ with respect to the formal means used to code those meanings. This approach allows for a typology based on functional domains, subdomains and functions coded in individual languages. The outcome of the study is a unified approach to language theory, linguistic typology, and descriptive linguistics. The argumentation for the hypotheses and the proposed approach is supported by analyses of data from more than a dozen languages, including English, Polish, French, Wandala, Mina, Hdi, and several other Chadic languages. The study is accessible to a wide variety of linguists.

Contents:

The Role of Functions in Syntax; Editorial page; Title page; LCC data; Table of contents; Acknowledgments; List of abbreviations; The importance of meaning for syntax; 1. The aim of the book; 2. A sample of open questions; 3. Significance of the book; 4. Content of the present volume; Part I: Theoretical and methodological foundations of the approach; Part II: Case studies; Part III: Typology within the proposed approach; Theoretical foundations of the proposed approach; 1. Introduction; 2. Semantic structure, functional domain and subdomain

4. Consequences of encoding locative predication in the grammatical system: Genitive predication in the locative phrase5. Conclusions; 5.1 Conclusions concerning Mina; 5.2 Theoretical conclusions; Lexical and morphological coding means and their implications; 1. Introduction; 2. Lexical categories, subcategories, and derivational morphology; 2.1 Lexical categories as a coding means; 2.2 An open question in lexical categories: Ideophones; 2.3 Motivation for lexical subcategories; 3. Verbal extensions; 4. Conclusions; Linear orders as coding means; 1. Introduction

2. Linear order in linguistic theory

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Description based on print version record.